West Memphis Murders Pt 1: Stevie, Michael and Chris

Grab your your old cassette tapes, and your deepest sense of injustice, because today we’re getting a broader understanding of the 1993 West Memphis Murders and the three little boys who never made it home.

On May 5th, 1993, three second graders- Stevie Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers left their homes in West Memphis, Arkansas for an ordinary bike ride. They were eight years old. They never came back.

What happened that night would become one of the most infamous child murder cases in American history.

In 1994, three teenagers- Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley would be convicted of those murders, in a trial driven by satanic panic, coerced confessions, and a complete collapse of justice.

In 1996, HBO aired Paradise Lost and the world saw what had happened in that courtroom. Over the next twenty years, the West Memphis Three would fight for their freedom from behind bars. They’d get it eventually- kind of. But this case? It’s not over.There’s new evidence. There’s new DNA. There’s a chance to finally do what Arkansas never did: find out the truth.

In part one of this series, we’re not starting with suspects. We’re starting with Stevie, Michael, and Chris-who they were, what they loved, and what was taken from them.
Because before this became a media circus, before it became a cause, it was a tragedy.

(originally released in May of 2023, full sources available in show notes)

Sources:
Jenkins, P (1992). Intimate enemies: moral panics in contemporary Great Britain. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
Victor, J (1998). "Construction of Satanic Ritual Abuse and the Creation of False Memories". In DeRivera J; Sarbin T (eds.). Believed-In-Imaginings: The Narrative Construction of Reality. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.
Finkelhor, David; Williams, Linda Meyer; Burns, Nanci; Kalinowski, Michael (1988). Sexual Abuse in Day Care: A National Study; Executive Summary (Report). Durham, North Carolina: University of New Hampshire.
Michelle Remembers, Lawrence Pasdar and Michelle Smith (1980)

Court Documents:
http://callahan.mysite.com/custom.html
Murders in West Memphis-
https://www.jivepuppi.com
Young WC; Sachs RG; Braun BG; Watkins RT (1991). "Patients reporting ritual abuse in childhood: a clinical syndrome. Report of 37 cases". Child Abuse Negl. 15 (3): 181–89.
Damien Echols, Life After Death
Mara Leverit, Devil's Knot (with Jason Baldwin)
Goleman, Daniel (October 31, 1994). "Proof Lacking for Ritual Abuse by Satanists". The New York Times.
Fraser, GA (1997). The Dilemma of Ritual Abuse: Cautions and Guides for Therapists. American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc
Spanos, NP (1996). Multiple Identities & False Memories: A Sociocognitive Perspective. American Psychological Association. pp. 269–85.
McLeod, K; Goddard CR (2005). "The Ritual Abuse of Children: A Critical Perspective".
Wood, JM; Nathan, D; Nezworski, MT; Uhl, E (2009). "Child sexual abuse investigations: Lessons learned from the McMartin and other daycare cases"


further viewing: 
Devils Knot (2015)
Geraldo Show - March 16, 1994 Transcript
Maury Povich Show - August 2, 1994 Transcript
CNN - "Presumed Guilty: Murder in West Memphis" - January 14, 2010 .css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}